MD Crunches Food becomes 64th President of Aba Sports Club

The auditorium of Aba Sports Club was filled by guests from all walks of life who came to grace the Inaugural Ball/installation of Mazi Jude Nwosu as the 64^th President of the Prestigious Aba Sports Club. Infonet9ja.com was at the event that saw the Governor of the State, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu being among the award recipients, honoured by the social club.

Incorporated as Aba European Club on March 12, 1926 and later renamed Aba Sports Club on October 14, 1982; about 20years after it was named Aba Club in 1962, the club has gone a long way to make its presence known and felt not only in the commercial hub of Abia State but in Nigeria as a whole.

While it is never a doubt that the majority of members of the prestigious club are from the Aba business community, it is important to point out that members of this club; Aba Sports cut across different professional backgrounds, making her the beautiful bride to court if one must be relevant in the political, economical and social class in Abia State.

As a club that lives up to its name, members enjoy games such as Table Tennis, Squash, Lawn Tennis, Dart, Billiards and Snookers, Monopoly, Golf, Jogging, Badminton, Gym, and Bus Stop (Senate) section where intellectual exercise is the major sporting event as a part of an effort to relax their brains and nerves after the days hardworking/stressful activities in the office.

Apart from the regular in-house sporting competition, Aba Sports Club through the Nigerian Breweries Plc, Aba has been successfully hosting Armature Golf Tournament at the Golf section of the club annually. This is even as members of the club hopes that they would one day host a tourney that would attract members of Professional Golfers of Nigeria (PGN) to the commercial city which they hope would promote economic and business activities in Aba and Abia State in general.

Apart from being a club who’s its member became the first Ukwa Ngwa Governor, a member of the club, Barr. Chibuike Nwokeukwu was recently elevated to become a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) including others that have carved a niche for themselves and as such making them to be in a vantage position to set agenda for discussion in the state especially during election years.

However, history was made in Aba Sports Club as guests from the hospitality industry across the 36 states of the federation and fields of life endeavours in their numbers filled the main auditorium of the club to witness the inauguration/Inaugural Ball of the 64^th President of the club, Mazi Jude Nwosu and other members of his executive to pilot the affairs of the club in the next two years.

The event also attracted the presence of Sir Chikwe Udensi (APGA 2015 guber aspirant), Chief Barr. Ahamdi Nweke, 2015 APGA Abia Central Senatorial Candidate, Abia Deputy Gov. Rt. Hon. Udo Okochukwu (representing Governor Okezie Ikpeazu), Senators Enyinnaya Harcourt Abaribe (Rep Abia South Senatorial District), Mao Ohuabunwa (Rep Abia North Senatorial District),Rt. Hon. Cosmos Ndukwe, Deputy Speaker, Abia State House of Assembly among captains of industries including the MD/CEO Tonimas Oil who gave the event the touch of class it deserves.

It was a day Abia politicians, business, public servants and corporate workers shelved aside their social and political leanings to wine and dine in celebration of a successful election and installation of a new leadership with the hope that the new team would champion the affairs of the prestigious club in the next two years when another set of executive would emerge.

As it has been the routine, it is also expected that the new leadership through innovative ideas would surpass the achievements of the out-gone leadership and at the same time, setting a standard for the regime that would succeed them in office. This idea has no doubt accounted to the infrastructural development witnessed in the club today. This is even as the newly elected executive have within the few months of being elected carried out various projects including the asphalting of the entire golf car section of the club.

In his address, the new President of the club, Mazi Jude Nwosu thanked his predecessor, Barr. Geoffrey Chinweoke Uzoagbara for restoring the shine of the club through innovative and infrastructural development brought to the club during his time as the president of the prestigious club.

Nwosu also thanked his successor for the high level of discipline the club recorded while he (Uzoagbara) stirred the ship of the self-sponsored club.

The newly elected President of Aba Sports Club however called for support of its members and stated that he and his team were willing to welcome advice and to carry everyone along, adding that his vision for the club was to make the club the best in the east of the Niger and the country at large.

Nwosu who listed several projects his administration intends to complete in all the sections of the club before leaving office said “I need your shoulders to lean on, and as you join hands with me, we shall recreate Aba Sport Club 1926 as a foremost club you will be proud of. Your support will go beyond awards and your names on plaques, but will remain as a testimony for posterity when the history of Aba Sports Club 1926 is told.”

In an interview, Nwosu said “It feels wonderful and great to be the president of a club of elites and stakeholders of Abia State. Aba Sports club represents the goodness of Abia State. It represents what Abia State can offer. It represents the industrialists of Nigeria. It represents great businessmen of great repute. So being one of the presidents of Aba Sports Club is leading a part of people who are incredibly and tremendously endowed with strength of purpose and making a difference wherever they are. This is why am very grateful to God that He gave me the opportunity to lead these extreme and wonderful people.

“Let me say that under my watch, we will take the golf section of the Aba Sports Club to a great height. It will be a place where the PGA (Professional Golf Association) will come to. As we speak, we have gotten companies, especially in the Southeast and South-South to sponsor Golf Tournaments. That in itself is tourism. By bringing these golfers to come to Aba Sports Club to come and play tournaments, the multiplier effect is that hotels will be booked, things will be sold in Aba and it will reengineer the economic activities in Aba as a metropolis.”

On how he is going to use the influence of the club to affect the Aba community positively, he said “Let me say that Aba Sports Club is not only a sporting club. We have social responsibility to our host community, which is Aba community. And by extension, you have a group of businessmen who are members of Aba Sports Club and by what they do at their individual companies is also the manifestation of the preaching of Aba Sports Club, that wherever we are, we are our brother’s keeper. Through that, we create a lot of charity. We have equally invited people from outside to come and talk about issues of national importance that will help to develop Abia State.

“In the near future, we are going to be discussing on issues of succession for example and all and sundry will be invited to listen to the dart of succession in Igbo businesses. You have men and women who do businesses and by the end of the day, when they die, there won’t be anybody that would succeed them and that becomes the end of the business.  It is part of the reason why our social responsibility is not only peculiar to Aba Sports Club but to our entire Aba community.

“What we have done in the past 4months, after being elected in November 2017 is what most past presidents do in 2years. We have attracted a 150KVA generator from the governor of the state valued at over N9m. We have asphalted the whole golf parking lot at a cost of over N9m. we have reroofed most of the buildings in Aba Sports Club. So, in the past 4months, we have done quite a lot and we have been able to meet our administrative and financial obligations as at when due.

“Decision making and planning are that of a good leader. You don’t have to come and take your chair and sit in a place and wait from morning till evening to provide excellent leadership. What we have done is that we are 12members of management committee and part of my job is to enable my committee members to be proficient in each person’s area of competence. We have been able to come together and achieve results beyond measure.

‘So, I have the time. If I have been able to run my business, I should be able to run Aba Sports Club.”

The out gone President, Uzoagbara in his speech thanked members of ensuring a free and fair election, adding that the outcome of the election which produced the incumbent leadership was a confirmation of the trust and acceptability that Jude Nwosu led team would deliver veritable landmarks for the continued growth of the club and its members.

Uzoagbara further encouraged the newly inaugurated team headship to continue on the path of discipline, stressing that without discipline nothing can ever be achieved especially as the strength of the club is growing daily.

The out-gone President who listed his achievements while in office promised to give his support and assistance anytime his advice was sought for.

Abia State Deputy governor, Udo Okochukwu who represented Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu thanked members of the club for their contribution in the economic and infrastructural development of the city and the state at large.

Ikpeazu while urging the new leadership not to lose focus while pursuing the dreams and aspirations of the club used the opportunity to thank the club for the award of “Game Changer” that was bestowed on him.

Highpoints of the events were taking of oath of office by the new executive, handing over of awards to individuals and performances from cultural dance troupes in attendance.